The school has one of best performing arts programs in the country, and their theater guild is exceptional. They were the first high school to do Shrek the Musical and have taken on very serious productions like Rent and Ragtime.

I was able to catch opening night last weekend and they did a great job. The staging and costumes were elaborate and made you feel like you were in 1930s New York City. Most importantly, the performances by the cast are out of this world good.

That said …

The reason why this post is in the “Guilty Pleasures” category is that I’m not really a fan of the music. It’s that classic big band sound that everyone seems to love but me. It’s ok in limited quantities like what Harry Connick Jr did in the 90s. When Connick brought back the sound it was kinda fresh and cool. But since then there have been other imitators and it’s really kind of sad that we have to keep going back to past styles instead of forging new ones. I’m looking at you, Michael Buble.

I’m sure there’s a chorus of you out there that’s saying, “But Hedonist, the Guys and Dolls movie had FRANK FRICKIN’ SINATRA.” My response –

wifflegif.com

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I can appreciate his singing and overall style, but I’m just over him. Let’s just agree to disagree, ok?

To me, the cool part about the Guys and Dolls movie wasn’t Frankie. The cool part was that the lead was played by Marlon Brando. There are stories about strained relations between Sinatra and Brando, as Sinatra had wanted the lead role of Sky Masterson. And this was after Brando landed another role Sinatra wanted – the lead in On The Waterfront. But Brando was the hottest name in Hollywood at the time, so it made sense put him in the top spot.